EU leaders have said the deal available to the UK is the only one possible and that they won’t start a new negotiation if British MPs vote it down. Jean-Claude Juncker, the commission president, said this was “the only deal possible”. At a press conference he appeared to rule out making changes to the agreement if May loses the vote in parliament. But at the same press conference Donald Tusk, the European council president, was more circumspect (see 11.39am) and other leaders also refused to speculate on what might happen in these circumstances (eg Angela Merkel – see 11.54am). There is clearly no appetite at all for any substantial renegotiation, but the Commons vote is expected to take place in the week of the December EU summit, and some of the EU leaders seemed keen on keeping their options open if May were to return to Brussels having lost the vote.

May has claimed MPs will generate “division and uncertainty” if they reject her Brexit deal – although she has refused to speculate on what would happen next in those circumstances. Judging by her extremely non-committal press conference, she seems to be keeping her options open. (See 1.30pm.)

Concerns over fishing rights are still high on the agenda for Scottish politicians, despite Theresa May’s assurances in her letter to the nation that her Brexit deal will take the UK “out of the common fisheries policy that has failed our coastal communities”.

Labour’s shadow Scotland secretary, Lesley Laird, has written to the Scotland secretary, David Mundell, insisting he clarify his position, having previously said that he could not support any extension of CFP rules past 2020. Describing the current deal as “a clear breach of your red line on fishing”, Laird says:

I would therefore be grateful if you were able to clarify that you will not be voting for the deal on this basis. If that is the case, I really must ask why you have not resigned your position in the cabinet?

Last week the UK government insisted May’s deal did not tie future access to British fishing waters with trade.

Earlier, the Aberdeen South MP, Ross Thomson, a hard Brexiter Tory, confirmed he would vote against the deal in the Commons. Describing the fishing arrangements as “troubling” on the BBC One’s Sunday Politics Scotland, he said:

It’s in the interest of the EU to keep [the CFP] going and they want to build on those existing arrangements, so to my mind that can only mean the continuation of some form of common fisheries policy.

It may not be called that but if it looks like the CFP and behaves like the CFP, it is the CFP.

Grassroots for Europe, a network that says it represents more than 100 groups campaigning against Brexit, has delivered a letter to Donald Tusk, president of the European council, asking him not to to anything that would prevent a second referendum, and to make provision for possibly revoking article 50.

Our campaigners know from talking every week to ordinary people on streets and doorsteps that public opinion is changing and people are realising the Brexit deal is nothing like what they were promised or what many of them were persuaded to vote for.

We are making sure that our MPs know this, understand that the people’s will has changed, and carry out the people’s majority demand for the right to reject Brexit.

With this letter we are taking the same message to the EU in Brussels, to ask, in the mutual interest of all EU citizens, for the time and cooperation to allow UK electors the chance of a democratic rethink.

Responding to the news that the European Union has endorsed the Brexit deal, the Scottish government’s Brexit secretary, Michael Russell, has issued a statement saying May’s Brexit deal “does not work for Scotland”. He says:

It takes Scotland out of the European Union against our democratic wishes, it removes us from the single market against our economic interests, and it would put us at a competitive economic disadvantage compared to Northern Ireland. The only thing it guarantees is years of damaging uncertainty.

Meanwhile the first minister, Nicola Sturgeon, is continuing to press the point on fishing rights: in this tweet below she challenges the Scotland secretary, David Mundell, on the link between access to waters and trade, something that the UK government insists will not be ongoing, but which many others looking at the agreement think is inevitable.

Nicola Sturgeon (@NicolaSturgeon)

I’ll be interested to hear David Mundell explain how this - ‘existing reciprocal access and quota shares’ - can be squared with the promises made to the Scottish fishing industry. (Hint - it can’t). https://t.co/9sO8TBsLVh

Macron suggests France could push to keep UK in backstop if it doesn't get concessions on fishing

Here are some highlights from Emmanuel Macron’s press conference. The French president repeated his claim that Brexiters lied during the referendum and he suggested that France would push to keep the UK in the backstop if it does now win concessions on fish.

The tweets are from my colleague Jennifer Rankin, the Daily Mail’s David Churchill, the Express’s Joe Barnes, the Times’ Bruno Waterfield and the Sun’s Nick Gutteridge.

Jennifer Rankin (@JenniferMerode)

Emmanuel Macron on the Brexiteers: "Those who said the British people would save hundreds of millions of pounds or euros have lied."

Emmanuel Macron confirms fishing to be key post-Brexit battleground. He says: 'For fisheries we will concentrate our effort to obtain access to the British waters before the end of the transition period and all of our fisherman and fisheries will be protected.' #EUCO#Brexitpic.twitter.com/k8zfSbPaTM

I just asked Emmanuel Macron on what help he can offer Theresa May by potentially climbing down on his fisheries demands. He said: 'I don’t want to interfere on the decision in parliament. It's not France, it's 27 countries that back the position.' #Brexit

Bombshell from Macron who suggests if EU doesn't get what it wants on fishing it'll force UK into backstop customs union. WA says fisheries deal should be done by July 2020 so coincides with decision on whether to trigger backstop. Brexiteer MPs' worst nightmare about May's deal.

Macron's quote: 'It is leverage because it is important as to our future relationship and I do not understand that Mrs May and those who support her very much wanted to stay in the Customs Union, they would rather favour new rules.'

UK should be ready for a big fight on fishing rights. It was one of the first things both Merkel and Macron mentioned in their remarks to media, unprompted by any question."Undoubtedly going to be an area where negotiations are going to be tough,” Merkel said.

Varadkar says EU leaders decided not to discuss what would happen if MPs reject Brexit deal

At a briefing for the Irish media after the summit Leo Varadkar, the Irish prime minister, said today’s deal was the only one available. He said:

Let’s not forget what we have here. We have an agreement that took between 18 months and two years to negotiate, it is in several parts, is over 500 pages long and as of today has the support of 28 governments.

Anyone can have a better deal or an alternative deal in their own minds but an agreement 500 pages long that 28 member states can sign up to nobody has that. What’s on the table is the only deal that’s on the table.

He also said the “entire European Union” was of the view that the deal could not be renegotiated.

What’s being put in front of EU parliament and House of Commons is a deal. Any other deal really only exists in people’s imagination.

Asked whether EU leaders had discussed what they would do if the vote in the House of Commons failed, Varadkar said the EU 27 had made a “conscious decision” not to discuss what may happen in such a scenario.

This is a bad deal for the country. It is the result of a miserable failure of negotiation that leaves us with the worst of all worlds. It gives us less say over our future, and puts jobs and living standards at risk.

That is why Labour will oppose this deal in parliament. We will work with others to block a no-deal outcome, and ensure that Labour’s alternative plan for a sensible deal to bring the country together is on the table.

That includes a permanent customs union with a UK say, a strong single-market deal and guarantees on workers’ rights, consumer and environmental protections.

Theresa May's press conference – summary

Here are the main points from Theresa May’s press conference:

May claimed MPs would generate “division and uncertainty” if they rejected her Brexit deal – although she refused to speculate on what would happen next in those circumstances. In fact, the theme of the press conference was May refusing to rule out possible fallback plans. She made the comment about “division and uncertainty” in her opening statement, which largely restated the arguments in her open letter to the nation. (See 9.26am.) She said:

Before Christmas, MPs will vote on this deal. It will be one of the most significant votes that parliament has held for many years. On it will depend whether we move forward together to a brighter future or open the door to yet more division and uncertainty.

But May refused to endorse what Jeremy Hunt, the foreign secretary, said this morning about a “no” vote possibly leading to the collapse of the government. (See 11.08am.) Asked about this, she said she was focused on getting the deal through – a line she used repeatedly.

She stressed that Jean-Claude Juncker and other EU leaders were describing this deal as “the only deal possible”. She said:

If people think somehow there is another negotiation to be done, that’s not the case. This is the deal. It is the result of what have been tough and difficult negotiations over a significant period of time.

But she did not rule out returning to Brussels to try to get concessions if she lost the vote on her deal. Asked if she could categorically rule this out, May repeated the point about how Juncker and others have described this as the only deal possible.

She refused categorically to rule out seeking a Norway-style relationship with the EU as a fallback. The Sunday Telegraph (here) and the Sunday Times (here) both carry similar stories today saying some cabinet ministers are discussing this as an option if MPs vote down May’s deal. The Sunday Telegraph says:

Senior figures on both side of the channel are urgently plotting alternatives to the agreement struck by the prime minister after 91 Conservative MPs indicated that they would oppose it in the Commons ...

Sources said several senior ministers were talking up one “plan B” idea of a Norway-style relationship with Brussels, under which the UK would have a more certain “exit mechanism” from the EU’s rules but would be unable to end the free movement of workers from the continent.

Under the Norway option, the UK would remain a member of the European Economic Area (EEA), without full EU membership.

When asked if she would categorically rule out this option, May implied that she would – without saying so explicitly. She said she was clear that she had negotiated the best deal available.

The people voted for Brexit. It’s, in a sense, a duty for their politicians, who asked them to make that choice, to then deliver on that choice. This is a deal that delivers on that because what people want to see is an end to free movement.

If the UK were to stay in the single market – the Norway option – free movement would continue.

She sidestepped a question about whether she would consider trying to form a government of national unity if her deal is voted down, to push an alternative plan through. This was asked as part of a two-pronged question, and May ignored this point entirely, answering just the first part of the question.

May restated her opposition to holding a second referendum. She said:

There should not be that second referendum. The public would expect parliament to vote on the deal. For most people in the UK they want a deal done and want us to get on with focusing more clearly on the issues that matter to them day to day.

She repeatedly refused to say whether or not she would resign if she lost the vote.

She said she did not feel sad about the UK leaving the EU. When told that Angela Merkel said she was sad about Brexit, and asked if she felt the same way, May said:

No, but I recognise that others do. I recognise some European leaders are sad at this moment, but also some European people in the UK will be sad at this moment.

She hinted that she might meet opposition MPs to try to secure their support in the vote on her deal.